


Raindrop

by Nitzer



Category: Helix Waltz (Video Game)
Genre: Canon Compliant, F/M, Tension, heavy emphasis on this being magda in chu's body and not chu, i just really like the ~feel~ of zhao lang, not really sexual just in general, spoilers for zhao's 2nd quest kinda, this isn't even necessarily romantic tbh, you know the world is ending and you're trying your best
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-28
Updated: 2019-08-28
Packaged: 2020-09-28 08:02:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,324
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20422619
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nitzer/pseuds/Nitzer
Summary: Magda feels safe with Zhao Lang, no matter what Chu or Ba Qi think. She's always felt safest in a den of wolves, a pack of lions, a nest of snakes.





	Raindrop

**Author's Note:**

> title technically from a South Club if there are any other crossover helix waltz/ Nam Taehyun fans out there  
i was supposed to write other helix waltz fics first i just really loved Zhao Lang's 2nd story quest ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯

It’s one of those hot days that melts into a chilly, rainy night when I go out for a stroll with Ba Qi. I’ve been here long enough to know that the cold night air wreaks havoc on Chu’s weak constitution but I (as Magda, as someone just taking a peak into this world) still can’t stand the heavy heat of Mandaria. So I postpone my explorations until after the sun goes down and leave the consequences of being sick to Chu. It is maybe not the most responsible I could do in this little box but I know I have infinite chances here. 

It is the first time I’ve been here, though. The scenery is unfamiliar and I don’t know who I will meet around a dark corner or what they will say. Ba Qi spots a moving shadow before I do. I’m used to everything I could ever want to see being lit up by flickering candles or grand chandeliers. I rarely expect to meet anyone in the dark. 

She points to something in the distance moving ever so slightly, a faint glow accompanying it. “It’s a ghost! I swear it’s a ghost.” She whines. “I told you the palace was haunted.” She ducks behind my coat, turning the umbrella and letting raindrops hit my face. 

“Ba Qi,” I reprimand, trying to wrestle the umbrella back from her, “be careful!”

But the further we travel the clearer it is that it’s not a ghost. It’s just a person standing under the low lights of a pavilion. Two people actually. I’m still trying to find a way to cover both me and Ba Qi at the same time when I realize that I suddenly don’t feel the chill of the night air at all. I feel warm. And the rain is still falling and we still haven’t settled the umbrella over me entirely. But I’m warm.

It’s Zhao Lang standing on the pavilion. I can finally recognize his features through the haze of the rain. When he sees it’s me his face melts into something softer and warmer. It’s a ghost of a smile, the corners of his lips just barely quirked up in recognition. For the famed “serpent” he’s never seemed particularly cold-blooded to me.

“Ah, Consort Chu,” he greets. His voice is commanding and loud but not intimidating. Not yet at least.

“Greetings your grace,” I greet back. I want to bow my head to him but Chu is already so short. My eye-level is at his chest while standing up straight.

Zhao Lang dismisses the minister he was speaking to. “Actually, I’d like to have a few words with Consort Chu.” He explains.

“Ba Qi, get another umbrella for me.” I instruct. “I’ll stay here with the prime minister.”

She looks at me with big, worried doe eyes and warnings ready on her tongue but I shoo her off before she can protest.

I know it’s a crime for ministers and consorts to meet alone. But I suppose this is not a meeting, it’s not planned and I also know there are still eyes on us. I’m not here to get Chu killed after all.

“So, tell me about that bird.” Lang asks, his ghost of a smile growing into a knowing smirk.

I hear the rain softly hit the roof of the pavilion and the frogs croaking down by the pond and I tell him. I tell about the dead bird and the thread around its leg and the other consorts and the emperor. And he smiles at me the whole time.

“You know just what to look for.” He tells me and a weird sense of pride swells in my chest. I’d become immune to being called beautiful, to being charming, to being a perfect lady (though the rules of Finsel rarely translated here). It’s something I have no control over. It’s something that just _is_. I have no defenses built towards being capable, for being _cunning_, for shuffling people around like chess pieces. It’s a skill I’ve honed, something I’ve learned. “You answer my questions before I even get a chance to ask.”

His eyes shine with mirth, interest, _warmth_ when I meet them. “I was not always a consort meant only to charm the emperor.” It is the closest thing to the truth I can tell him.

“Then you were ill-prepared, my grace.” He leans towards me almost challengingly.

I shift towards him as well, the hand supporting my weight creeping towards his. I stop moving when my pinky is almost touching his but not quite. We’ve never touched and I suppose it should stay that way.

He looks down at our almost touching hands and raises his eyebrows but says nothing.

I have some teasing retort ready on my tongue when I shiver instead. And one of the pointed, gold rings on the tips of my fingers scratches against his skin.

He barely winces. “Be careful with your claws.” It’s a familiar kind of playful admonishment.

Instead of apologizing, I straighten up and take off my rings. “I don’t need my claws here.” Under the rings there is unfamiliar soft skin and blunt nails.

There is a hint of surprise—but only a hint—that passes quickly over his face. It is the truth, though. I don’t believe this serpent has any fangs. He doesn’t scare me. I feel more at ease with him than anywhere else in the palace. But I guess every kid feels invincible until they come back bloodied. Lang is fair, though, he trades for his intelligence. He tells me about the other claims to the throne, about the emperor’s uncles and cousins, about floods and external threats. And what it all ultimately means—a dark storm just at the edge of our horizon. One that I may be able to stop. But only I know that.

The minister comes back as Zhao Lang finishes talking about Bello. “The emperor is ready for you, prime minister.” He informs us.

I stand up and bow my head slightly to him. “Thank you, My Lord.” It is just a formality here, in the palace, “_my_ grace,” “_my_ lord” but it feels different with him. With sharing this information and sneaking around trying to unravel a mystery before it destroys both of us. I feel like I report to him, like he in some way takes responsibility for me.

“Take care, Consort Chu. And don’t forget your claws.” He adds, picking up my rings. He slides the slightly-warmed metal onto my finger. “You’ll need them out there.” The brief eye-contact he makes with me feels like it lingers for hours and he peers directly into my soul.

I know this doesn’t mean anything in Mandaria though. Lang slipping a ring onto my ring finger is no promise, not proposal. It’s just a favor, an excuse to touch maybe. But I can pretend for just a moment. This once I can enjoy a man putting jewelry on me without signing my life away. So I do.

When Lang leaves I still don’t feel the cold of the rain. Ba Qi is approaching through the haze with two dots of color trailing behind her.

I know I am a consort here. I know I belong to the emperor. But I also know that only trying to gain the favor of the emperor will not stop this dynasty from crumbling. And I feel like Lang is the only one sharing the weight of this unstable palace with me. He is the only one I would trust to really fix this anyway. And I know that I am only a pretty plaything for the emperor, that I am _owned_. But I also know that Lang is helping me to keep the dynasty alive. And I know, in my heart of hearts, that when it crumbles I will not look to the emperor. I will look to Zhao Lang.

**Author's Note:**

> [tumblr](angelinmyheartt.tumblr.com) [cc](https://curiouscat.me/Nitzer)


End file.
